


Love Glows Red

by maxduckbutt



Category: DBSK | Tohoshinki | TVfXQ | TVXQ
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Fluff, Jaejoong is stupid, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-28
Updated: 2016-04-28
Packaged: 2018-06-05 02:48:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6686128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maxduckbutt/pseuds/maxduckbutt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A world where people are born with their heart in their hands.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Love Glows Red

Jaejoong was six when he sat bored in the hospital where his mother’s best friend was giving birth to her first son.

He didn’t understand why he had to be here but his mother looked excited and her heart glowed a bright and healthy red as it hung from a chain on her neck,

He didn’t understand why she wore her heart for everybody to see, he preferred keeping his heart in the box under his bed.

His heart was embarrassing. All it did was show that Park boy in play-school how much of a silly crush he had on him. Suffice to say the lack of reaction from the other’s heart was a tragic reminder of how being able to see a person’s heart can break your own.

He’s never going to forgive him for the bruise on the left side of his heart.

His mother had said it would heal. And it did. But he still wasn’t going to let it get hurt a second time.

Jaejoong flinched as a piercing wail echoed across the hall and he wondered miserably why babies were so stupid and loud.

It was another hour before his mother walked over to him with a pruned little monkey in her arms and smiled, “Meet Yunho.”

Jaejoong looked at the creature and grimaced, “He looks kinda stupid.”

But then Jaejoong’s eyes wandered to Yunho’s clenched fist.

He reached out to open up the other’s fingers and gasped quietly as the still tiny heart glowed a beautiful pink.

“He has a pretty heart though,” he admitted grudgingly.

His mother smiled, “You have to protect it, okay?”

“I can’t make any promises,” he murmured precociously, “but I’ll do my best.”

“That’s my boy,” the woman whispered gently before placing a kiss a top his head and then Yunho’s.

Jaejoong watched delightedly as Yunho’s heart turned a little bit red.

“I’ll protect it,” he whispered.

 

  
Five years later and Jaejoong wondered what he was thinking when he said he’d protect Yunho’s heart.

The younger boy was so hopelessly gone on Jaejoong that he almost felt like crying every time he’d say no to the younger boy.

Yunho would ask Jaejoong to be his husband (God help him and his baby crush), Jaejoong would shake his head and turn away.

He wouldn’t feel so bad, except every single time he’d turn away, Yunho’s pretty little heart would get another bruise.

In fact it had gotten so bad that his mother had cornered him one day and said, “Humour the poor boy, Jaejoong just say you’ll marry him when he’s older.”

Two days later when Yunho skipped his little self into Jaejoong’s room asking Jaejoong to be his husband…

Jaejoong mumbled, “Maybe when you’re older.”

He watched morosely as the boy’s heart cleared itself of bruises and glowed a bright happy red.

 

  
Turn the clock forward thirteen years into the future.

Jaejoong had had enough.

He’d gotten so tired and frustrated with Yunho constantly telling the world that they were engaged when really it had just been Jaejoong doing what he’d had to to stop Yunho from bruising that beautiful heart of his.

“Yunho! Go get a boyfriend! Grow up! Stop being persistent and hounding after someone who is six years older than you and find someone your own age! I can’t even get a fucking boyfriend because all you do is tell everyone that you and I are engaged!”

Jaejoong winced and stared shocked as a single lonely crack made its way across Yunho’s now blue and purple heart.

He tried to call out to the boy when the other ran away, but could only croak miserably at having finally been the one to ruin someone’s heart.

After that, he didn’t see Yunho again for a good long while and Jaejoong wondered why he felt a phantom throb in a heart long hidden.

He’d fooled himself enough all these years to ignore it and move on.

 

  
Eight months later Jaejoong almost brained himself against a wall when he saw Yunho kissing that Shim boy at his mother’s birthday party.

He clenched his teeth and went to find his date, trying desperately not to think about why he wanted to massacre everyone within a hundred mile radius.

His mother who had been laughing at something Yunho’s mother had said to her, turned when she found Jaejoong glaring at her with watery eyes.

“Why does my twenty four year old son look like he’s going to bawl his eyes out?”

Yunho’s mother gazed at him knowingly.

“I think he just found out what it’s like to have a properly broken heart.”

“Oh, I wish he’d stop hiding that heart of his. If he can’t see his own heart, how the hell is he supposed to find out how he really feels?”

“Give it time.”

Yunho, who had seen Jaejoong’s reaction smiled sadly at his best friend.

“Did you get the reaction you wanted?” Changmin asked, staring blithely at Yunho’s now taped and bleeding heart.

“Almost.”

 

  
Ten months later Yunho was packing his bags for his flight to England.

He’d gotten into the undergraduate programme at King’s.

His parents were ecstatic and, well, he would be too if it wasn’t for the fact that he still had unfinished business with his self-proclaimed “one true love”.

He sighed as he put his crumbling heart into a silver box, trying not to cry at seeing it so mutilated and broken.

He’d had enough. Anymore of this and he’d have no heart left to save.

He got up and grabbed his coat.

One last time, he said to himself.

He’d try one last time.

 

  
Yunho walked into the Kim household, and smiled when he saw Jaejoong’s mother walk towards him, a warm smile on her face.

“Is Jaejoong home?” he asked.

“He went out to the store, he should be back soon. Why don’t you go wait in his room.”

Yunho nodded and ran up the stairs.

When he entered Jaejoong’s room, he felt a sense of calm wash over him and let his feelings guide him to the bed.

He bent down and saw a brown wooden box under a bunch of posters and reached in to draw it out.

He opened the box and whimpered seeing Jaejoong’s heart lying just as broken as his within the confines of the stupid box.

He pulled it out and gasped when the heart started to knit itself together and began to glow a beautiful bright pink.

He lifted it out and put the box back.

And then Jaejoong walked in.

The older man tried not to wince as he saw a healthy and loved heart in Yunho’s hand, knowing that Changmin’s love had healed what Jaejoong had broken.

He didn’t notice the little bruise that had formed on the right side of his heart.

Yunho smiled at him.

“Do you love me?”

Jaejoong stared back at him.

The heart glowed red.

Yunho grinned, “Never mind. I know the answer.”

It was then that Jaejoong realised that the heart Yunho was holding in his hands was not the other’s but rather his own.

Before he could panic, Yunho shortened the gap between the two of them and kissed the older man the way he’d always wanted to – long, hard and lovingly.

“Yah, Kim Jaejoong. I’m going to keep your heart with me forever. I can obviously protect it better than you ever could.”

Jaejoong just nodded dumbly, trying not to pass out from one kiss.

“Only if I can keep yours.”

Yunho grinned.

And somewhere, a heart in a little silver box, healed and glowed the brightest of red – it was true love.

**Author's Note:**

> Comment/Kudos You know the drill


End file.
